Dear Life, I Quit
by The Vampire Kaori
Summary: Kagome ran away, giving up on life and her future with Inuyasha. Now the hanyou must look for her to try and get her to return. But with a new friend and a village that needs her will the miko go back to the life she once knew and loved?
1. A Cruel Betrayal

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of the characters…though I wish I did. -

Kaori: I thought of this earlier today when I was finishing up Scars, I hope you all like it.

**Summary: Kagome ran away, giving up on life and her future with Inuyasha. Now the hanyou must look for her to try and get her to return. But with a new friend and a village that needs her; will the miko go back to the life she once knew and loved?**

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 1 _A Cruel Betrayal_**

"I've made another snack for us." Kagome said; a bright smile was spread across her pretty face as she neared her feudal friends. "I hope you'll all like it, I made it in a hurry." She glared at Inuyasha who was tagging along side of her; the hanyou had been standing over her the whole time she was trying to make the lunch.

"No worries, Kagome-chan. I'm sure it'll be great no matter what." Sango smiled at her friend fondly. "You always manage to make it the best tasting meal we've had in days." Miroku nodded from where he sat in agreement with Sango.

"Arigatou, Sango-chan." Kagome smiled brightly, she then looked down at Shippo who was rubbing his hands together and looking up at her eagerly.

"Kagome…did you bring it?" the small kitsune youkai asked gingerly.

Kagome giggled, "hai, Shippo." She took out a large pink and red lollypop from her yellow backpack and gave it to him. "I'd never forget you!"

"Ah! Arigatou!" Shippo shouted as he grabbed the lollypop and sat on the ground with it, fighting the plastic wrap off.

Kagome giggled and lay down a picnic blanket on the soft green grass; she then started to lay out the tubs of food. "You guys can dig in now if you want."

Miroku, Sango, Kirara, and Inuyasha sat around the blanket with Kagome and started to eat.

"Bleh, its no trouble to tell you rushed making this stuff." Inuyasha dropped the rice cake that was in his hand back into a tub. "It's too dry!"

Kagome sighed. "I knew it…"

Sango's eyes narrowed as she glared Inuyasha down. "Don't listen to him, Kagome-chan. We think it's great, don't we Miroku?"

Miroku nodded while he swallowed the food that was in his mouth. "It's as good as always, Kagome-san."

Kagome smiled, and then narrowed her eyes towards Inuyasha. She knew why he was complaining…and she had brought what he wanted too. _'Why do I always bring it with me? I should just make him eat what everyone else has to eat.'_

"The ramen is in my bag if you want it Inuyasha." The young miko sighed as she bit into her rice cake, which she came to realize was as good as they always were. "I'll start a fire so we can boil water for the noodles."

"Yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" Inuyasha dug into the yellow bag while Kagome left the mat and started on making a fire.

Sango shook her head sadly and looked over at Miroku, who watched the hanyou and miko while still stuffing his face, this time with omelet. "I'm surprised she never sat him." She said to the monk.

Miroku nodded. "Kagome doesn't seem to mind Inuyasha's ignorance all that much anymore. I wonder how much anger she has built up inside her right now."

'_More than you two can imagine, Miroku.'_ Kagome thought her herself as she put the pot of bottled water over the fire. _'I wish he'd appreciate me and all I do for him…he never seems to.'_ The young miko watched as Inuyasha reached out and held the pack of ramen up in her face, waiting for her to take it. _'But I guess that's too much to ask.'_ She took the ramen.

"Inuyasha, you should eat what Kagome had cooked for us!" Shippo exclaimed as he moved from his lollypop to a large helping of an omelet. "She shouldn't' have to tend on you like you are a baby with picky eating habits!" that remark earned the small kitsune a bump on the head served by Inuyasha.

"Shut up!" the hanyou roared at the smaller youkai.

"Inuyasha…osuwari." Kagome said flatly, she watched as the hanyou's face met the ground. "Shippo didn't deserve that."

Inuyasha growled and looked up at the young miko; he never bothered to argue with her this time, the chances of him getting another face full of dirt was more that high that that point.

Kagome poured the boiled water into the container of ramen and handed it to Inuyasha. "Here, now eat."

"Ah…that was a great meal." Miroku lay back under a tree. "I'm ready for a good nap right about now."

"Looks like Shippo beat you to it." Kagome giggled a she watched the small kitsune sleep near her. She looked over at Inuyasha. "So did you enjoy your ramen after?" she watched as the hanyou moved his golden orbs over towards her.

"Feh."

"Thought so." Kagome sighed and stood up. "I'm going for a walk; I'll be back in a few minutes, okay guys?"

Sango nodded. "Take all the time you need." She then glared over at Inuyasha hatefully.

When Kagome disappeared into the trees Inuyasha returned the hateful stare. "What was that for!" he barked at the youkai slayer.

"Why can't you just give Kagome a break, Inuyasha?" Sango asked.

"Hai, she does a lot for you, and I never even hear you sat arigatou to her once." Miroku joined in.

"Feh. She knows-" Inuyasha stopped and sniffed the air, his ears twitched. _'Kikyo…'_ He cleared his throat. "I'm going for a walk too; don't even think about following me." He too then disappeared into the trees.

Sango looked at Miroku. "Kikyo?"

"Yup."

The girl sighed. "See…no respect or care for what Kagome does for him, none at all."

"Baka, Inuyasha! I give and I give!" Kagome stomped through the trees angrily. "And he don't even thank me!" the miko crossed her arms and stopped walking. "I'm not bringing anymore ramen through the well until he at least starts to appreciate me A LITTLE!"

A noise from the trees caught Kagome's attention, she ventured further through the brush until she came to a little clearing. Kikyo was there…and so was Inuyasha. The young miko hit in the bushes and watched the two.

"Kikyo…are you here to stay with me this time?" Inuyasha asked the dead miko.

"Inuyasha, you know I'm not able to." Kikyo said. "I am one of the dead…I cannot…" an evil look appeared in the miko's face. "I can only be truly alive again if I can get my whole soul into this body. Can you do that for me?"

Inuyasha looked stunned. "But…that means…Kagome will…"

"You care more for her than me?" Kikyo asked, looking a little taken back.

"Lie, lie. Kikyo I love you…and only you…" Inuyasha said as he grabbed the dead miko and embraced her. "We just need Kagome for the time being…and I know the others won't accept you to search for the jewel shards…"

Kagome gasped, making Inuyasha and Kikyo look her way. She stood, so that they could both see her. The look on Inuyasha's face was one of terror, it made Kagome sick. "OSUWARI!" she roared in anger.

Inuyasha's face hit the ground, dragging Kikyo down with him. On impact the miko's clay body smashed under the hanyou's body and turned to dust. Kagome watched as the rest of her soul traveled back to her…she then ran, yelling the command one last time as to make sure the hanyou never followed.

Tears ran down over Kagome's face as she raced through the trees. _'What have I done? I…I destroyed her! I destroyed Kikyo!'_ she let out a wild cry as she jumped over a fallen tree. _'He'll kill me now for sure! I can't…I can't go back…Inuyasha will never forgive me! All the respect I want from him is definitely not worth wishing for now! The only respect I'll get from him now is if he finds my cold dead body at the edge of a stream!'_

Tree branches whipped at her bare legs and face and tore her uniform, but she never stopped, even when she felt the blood from her scratches start to tickle down her skin she kept going. She had to get as far away from Inuyasha as she possibly could.

'_My smell…'_ Kagome thought with a sudden rush of horror. _'He can chase my sent! He won't be long catching me!'_ Kagome stopped running and looked around, a small bog of mud was just too one side of where she was running.

The young miko jumped into the pond of mud, getting the brown substance all through her hair and all over her cloths and skin; the scratches on her legs stung, but at least Inuyasha couldn't smell her now. She then started running again, with no intention of stopping.

Kaori: Well that's it for chapter one. Let me know how you liked it! I got a really good feeling about this story! Ja ne!


	2. Tusaka of the Leopards

Disclaimer: Don't own Inuyasha…yadda yadda yadda…but I do own Tusaka!

Kaori: Well, here I am again with another chapter. -

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 2 _Tusaka of the Leopards_**

Inuyasha dusted the powered clay off his kimono; he watched the remains of Kikyo disappear with the light breeze. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest. _'She wasn't supposed to hear it…'_ he thought, suddenly feeling a little weak in the knees. _'It was a bluff…'_

Over the past two weeks, Kikyo had had an idea to steal her whole soul back from Kagome. Inuyasha, secretly not liking the idea of losing the only person who actually loved him for that he was, had started to tell Kikyo to wait until all the jewel fragments were found before she take the rest of her soul back.

Kagome wasn't suppose to hear it…she wasn't suppose to think that he was actually plotting against her. _'Kagome…'_ Inuyasha squeezed his fists together; he could still feel the tingle on his stomach where Kikyo's fragile body was smashed under Kagome's command. _'She must think I'm ready to kill her now…'_ the hanyou thought bitterly.

Inuyasha ran back through the trees, a mixture of emotions swimming through his body. He did love Kikyo dearly…but his feelings for Kagome seemed to overwhelm them somehow. _'Kikyo is most definitely gone now…'_ he thought to himself. _'So I no longer have to worry about her taking Kagome's soul…but Kagome…'_ he let out a sigh as he neared the camp. _'I'll have to explain everything to Miroku and the others, because I know she isn't going to come back very easily…I just hope Sango takes it easy on me.'_

"BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!" Sango screamed as she rapidly hit Inuyasha over the head with her Hiraikotsu. "HOW COULD YOU? BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!" she slammed the hanyou in the side of the head and took him off his two feet, she then rose Hiraikotsu up over her head, and was about to give him another hammering, but Miroku grabbed her arms and made her drop the heavy weapon.

"Hold on Sango!" Miroku yelled. "You don't need to kill him!"

"Get off me Hentai!" Sango yelled; she then looked down at the battered Inuyasha with a look of pure hatred. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't!" As a reaction to Sango's temper against Inuyasha, Kirara also started to hiss and growl at the hanyou.

"Kagome-chan does so much for you!" angry tears were now streaming down Sango's face. "And you repay her by putting in this evil plot with Kikyo? You should have destroyed that clay BITCH as soon as she was brought back to life! She never loved you in death as she did in life! She was going to kill Kagome-chan and then kill you too!" the youkai slayer tore away from Miroku and dragged Inuyasha to his feet by the collar of his kimono. "But you were too blind…blind and stupid…"

Inuyasha ripped away from Sango's assault and rubbed his dead. "It was a bluff I told you! Fuck! I wanted to hold her off from killing Kagome! She would have done it with or without me!"

"That still doesn't explain why you never destroyed her in the first place!" Sango screamed. "Kikyo wanted you to die with her…and she wanted to turn you human when she was alive." Sango sank to her knees and started to cry more hurtfully. "Kagome loved you the way you were…she wouldn't change you for the world…and now look at what you've done…"

"And Kami only knows what poor Kagome-san is thinking right now." Miroku said, kneeling next to Sango and rubbing her shoulders.

"Yeah," Shippo glared up at Inuyasha. "She's probably running away terrified of you right now."

Miroku nodded. "The thought is probably going through her head that you are ready to kill her for making Kikyo's body shatter like that." The monk sighed and took the crying Sango fully into his arms. "We have a very low chance of finding her."

Sango looked up at Inuyasha hatefully, she cuddled herself into Miroku. "…bastard…"

Kagome fell to her knees; the mud over her body had hardened and started to crust off in large clumps. Her body was tired and bleeding, and she couldn't get a good grasp on her air intake, it felt as if her lungs were shriveled and tightened up in her chest. _'How far am I after running?'_ the young miko thought as she looked around the unfamiliar field she had stopped in. _'I don't recognize this place at all…'_

A bunch of steam was rising over a small grassy hill…she recognized the look of it, and she gleefully stumbled to her feet. "…a hot spring…" she said as she made her legs run up over the hill. _'It will clean off my smell barrier…but at least I can feel clean for a little while.'_

As the young miko got to the top of the hill the hot spring came into view, like all the others she and Sango had been to, it was surrounded by rocks and boulders and looked very inviting.

Kagome took off her cloths and threw them into the hot water, she watched as the hardened mud started to separate from the white and green cloth, she then climbed in along with her cloths and sank completely in under the two feet of water. She ran her hands through her hair and made sure all the mud and tangles were out before she resurfaced.

"Ah…so warm…" she groaned as she rested her head on one of the rocks, keeping the rest of her body completely submerged in the water. She moved her hands around the small pool and took her cloths out of the water to let them dry on the surrounding rocks.

Her brown eyes looked up to the sky, the sun was setting. _'They aren't going to come looking for me tonight…'_ Kagome thought as she closed her eyes and swayed her hands through the water. _'So I'm safe here for a little while longer.'_ Her aching legs started to feel a lot better because of the warmness of the water, and it soon started to put her asleep.

Just as she was about to doze off, she felt something crawl up her stomach, coming to rest on her chest. Kagome's eyes slowly opened and she looked down, resting on her breast was a large toad, its three red eyes stared back at her. A sudden chill rose in the young miko's body, and when the toad let out a deep "ribbet" she screamed, making the startled toad jump off her and swim to the other end of the pool. It got up on a rock and stared back at her, not blinking.

"It touched me! IT TOUCHED ME!" Kagome scrubbed her chest with her hands and started to splash around, utterly terrified of the toad. "AH!"

"Hey! Hey!" a young man ran down over the hill and stopped near the hot spring. "Please, stop your screaming and calm down!"

Upon hearing his voice Kagome let out another vicious scream and curled up into a ball in the water. She looked up at him, he wore a red and yellow kimono, and had two daggers strapped to his sides, his hair was blue and spiked back,; his ears were pointed and a leopards tale was sprouted from his rear. '_A youkai…'_ Kagome thought. She moved to his eyes, which were covered by his left hand…he had actually covered his eyes!

"Listen lady, if you can make yourself decent I maybe able to help you out here…" the youkai took another step towards the spring. "I can only imagine that you're naked since this IS the hot spring…"

Kagome slowly got up out of the water and put her damp cloths back on, she turned to the youkai who was now lowering his hand. His eyes were a brilliant green! They were beautiful cat eyes, which is how Kagome identified them.

The youkai smiled. "The toad is nothing to worry about; he just lives in the spring." He explained, making a hand gesture towards the toad. "He will not harm you…though he tends to get a little in-your-face at times."

Kagome twitched. "I'm not too good with slimy little reptiles…" she looked at the toad as it returned to the water. She sighed and looked back to the youkai. "I'm Kagome."

"Tusaka," the youkai saluted her and bowed. "I was part of the great Leopard Army until I ran for it three years ago."

"You're a runaway?" Kagome asked.

"Hai Kagome-san," Tusaka nodded. "I couldn't bare being off at war away from my beautiful Gina. When we were heading into our final battle it was made perfectly clear that very few of us would make it back alive." He sighed. "I took off; if I was to die I wanted to do so near my beloved Gina. But by the time I made my way back to my home, Gina along with many others were long gone, and the town was burnt to the ground."

"That's so sad…" Kagome said.

Tusaka nodded. "Ever since then I've been searching for them, but I haven't caught any of their sent, so I've been roaming blindly through the land looking for them. I have come to terms that now I am probably not going to find them, so I am just a wanderer looking for a place to belong." He looked at Kagome. "What about you? You are not from around here are you?"

Kagome shook her head, "I am a runaway as well." She told Tusaka of how she came to be in the feudal era, and the kinds of adventures her and her friends have been through thus far, including the fight against Naraku, all the way up to the most current event that had made her flee. "I bet Inuyasha hates me now, and I bet he would do anything to rip me to pieces." She looked up at the rising moon. "So I am not going back there, I'll find a new place to live…"

"What about your home through the well?" Tusaka asked who was now sitting right along side of Kagome. "Can't you go back there?"

She shook her head. "Inuyasha can chase me through there."

"Hai, I see." Tusaka nodded his head. "So you are a miko, ne?"

Kagome nodded. "Hai."

"That's interesting…" he smiled. "So Kagome-sama, are you in need of a travel partner?"

Kagome looked at him surprisingly. "Nani?"

"I just figured that you might want to travel with someone." Tusaka smiled. "Someone to help fight off evil toads."

Kagome laughed and nodded her head. "That would be great."

"Sugoi." Tusaka smirked. "Now Kagome-sama, where shall we camp to on this night?"

"Here should be good enough." Kagome smiled.

Tusaka nodded. "As you wish, Kagome-sama."

"Hey Tusaka," Kagome looked over at him. "Just call me Kagome."

"Hai, my miko friend." Tusaka grinned.

Kaori: Soooo? What do you think? Review -


	3. Let Your Soul Carry You

Disclaimer:…this is the last time I'm putting this up here….you all get the idea. Inu and Conot mine. Tusakamine. Ne? lol ;

Kaori: Arigatou Shel for the e-mail. This chappie is for you!

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 3 _Let Your Soul Carry You _**

Kagome's eyes fluttered open, the sun was well up into the sky, and the smell of roasting fish met her nose. "Tusaka-kun?" The young miko sat up and looked to one side, the youkai was knelt in front of a fire with fish hanging off sticks all around it, and a flat rock in the middle of the flame with a thick blue substance sizzling on it.

"Ohayoo gozaimasu, Kagome-sama." Tusaka said cheerfully. "Do fish and Cheeko eggs sound good for breakfast?"

"Hai, but what's a Cheeko?" Kagome asked as she crawled over next to her new friend. "Is it a bird?"

"Hai, it's a very small bird that lays very blue eggs." Tusaka answered. "The blue lump right here on the rock is five of the eggs mashed together, it might no look very good, but it is actually real tasty."

"Wai." Kagome exclaimed. "I can't wait to try it."

"I figured you needed a rest from cooking from what you told me last night." Tusaka explained. "And sense you are the one who introduced different foods to your friends, I decided to introduce something different to you."

"Arigatou." Kagome said with a slight bow of her head.

"No thanks needed, Kagome-sama."

Kagome smiled. "Tusaka-kun I thought I asked you to just call me Kagome."

Tusaka grinned and looked into Kagome's brown orbs. "I have more respect for a miko such as yourself than to just call you 'Kagome'. A lady of your stature should be used to it."

"I only ever heard Miroku call me that." Kagome sighed.

"Dare? The hentai monk?" Tusaka chuckled. "He must have a little respect jammed into that hentai mind of his."

"He is a real caring person…" Kagome smiled. "He and Sango belong with one another!"

Tusaka laughed. "It's obvious that these are not the friends that drove you to run." He handed the young miko a large green leaf with a fish and a piece of the Cheeko egg on it.

Kagome looked down at the food. "Inuyasha…"

Tusaka smiled solemnly and put his arm around her shoulder. "Hey, it's alright. He'll realize what he lost soon enough. If he doesn't he's a bigger baka than what you've told me he is." He nuzzled her shoulder with his forehead. "Now eat up, Kagome-sama. We have a long road ahead of us today." The youkai then rose to his feet and started to eat his share of breakfast while the fire died out.

Inuyasha's ears twitched; there was no sound or smell of Kagome left in the forest. He had lost any track of her at the mud pond in the forest near the camp; he had no idea where she had run off to after that.

"Dammit." The hanyou sat down on a rock, he looked up at his companions and half snarled. "She could be anywhere right now. All I can smell here is some kind of a cat youkai, no Kagome."

"Maybe the youkai snatched her up." Sango said.

"No, if it had I'd be able to smell her." Inuyasha said while gritting his teeth together.

"Maybe the cat youkai ate her." Shippo suggested.

Inuyasha slammed his fist down on Shippo's head as hard as he could. "Baka, if I wanted your two cents I would have asked for it!" he growled. Inuyasha rested his chin in his hands. "I've really fucked up this time."

"Duh." Sango snapped.

"Inuyasha she maybe just gone back to her own time, you know how Kagome gets when she gets angry." Miroku suggested.

Inuyasha shook his head. "I was already there this morning; her mom said that she never came back." The hanyou sighed and closed his eyes. _'I'm sorry Kagome…I'm sorry for all that I put you through…if I could take it back I would…"_

"Tusaka-kun I don't think this is a good idea…" Kagome looked down into the deep gorge Tusaka had just jumped over. After they had eaten breakfast the two had ventured into the mountains in search of a town…instead they had found what appeared to be a bottomless ravine.

"Why not?" Tusaka asked as he watched the miko timidly look over the side of the gorge. "It's a piece of cake; I know you can make it."

Kagome swallowed, she could picture herself disappearing into the darkness below her. "Tusaka-kun I can't…I won't make it."

"Even if you don't make it you won't fall, I won't allow it." Tusaka smiled and opened his arms. "I'll catch you before you even realize you were falling in the first place." Kagome never budged. "Come on, have I done anything thus far to give you a reason not to trust me?"

"No…no you haven't." Kagome slowly stepped back from the gorge; she closed her eyes when she was ready to run.

"Just let your soul carry you, Kagome-sama!" Tusaka yelled. "Trust in it to take you anywhere you wish to go!"

Kagome nodded and ran blindly towards the gorge; she didn't dare open her eyes. When she felt her foot on the edge of the rock she let out a cry and pushed off, making herself soar through the air. _'Please let me make it…'_

She left herself start to fall, but before she could let out a cry she felt Tusaka's arms wrap around her. "Hey! You made it." The youkai said happily.

Kagome opened her eyes; she was on the other side of the gorge. "How did I do that?"

"You trusted yourself," Tusaka said as he returned Kagome to her feet. "That's all you need to do in order to succeed."

"Arigatou." Kagome smiled.

"No problem, Kagome-sama." Tusaka smiled. "Now, shall we head on?"

"Hai lets go, I'm sure there is a village around here somewhere." Kagome said as she started walking.

Tusaka walked behind her, all the time thinking the same thing over. _'That hanyou is a baka…to allow something to precious out of his grasp. If he can realize how much importance she holds in his life in time…the two may be able to patch things up.'_ The youkai sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. _'For Kagome's sake I hope he comes to his senses soon.'_

"She was here…" Inuyasha sniffed around the dead camp fire that was near a hot spring. "She's with that damn cat youkai." He sniffed the air. "Their smell is all over the fuckin' place, I can't tell where they went."

"Another dead end," Sango sighed as she climbed down off Kirara's back. "This is getting nowhere fast."

"Kagome and that youkai could be anywhere by now." Miroku said, sitting by the spring.

"Ah, ye must be talking about the miko and that leopard." A three-eyed toad hopped up from the water.

"You saw Kagome?" Inuyasha whipped around and looked down at the toad.

"Hai, that young miko had the most beautiful breasts I've ever crawled upon." The toad answered with a snicker. "Too bad she noticed me there and screamed, catching the attention of the damn leopard youkai."

Inuyasha snarled and snatched the toad up by the throat. "I don't want to know your little hentai tales, toad. Just tell me where they went off to."

"To the mountains," the toad choked. "To see if they could come across a village anywhere up there…"

Miroku gasped, "Inuyasha those mountains are nothing but ravines filled with savage youkai that give off very poisonous miasma. If they make it through there Kagome will be barely alive."

"NANI?" Inuyasha roared before throwing the toad back into the pond and taking off across the field. _'…Kagome you better be alright…I'm going to find you, slay that youkai, and take you back. Don't worry I'm coming for you!'_

Kaori: AAAAAAAND I'm done for now Review


	4. The Sacred Dagger

Kaori: Wai I got lots of reviews sense last night XD Arigatou! Tee hee! Well anyways here we go, on to chapter 4…

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 4 _The Sacred Dagger_**

Kagome coughed into her hand, she squinted and tried to look through the heavy purple mist that had gathered around the mountain. "Tusaka-kun there isn't a village here; if there was all the people in it would be dead…this miasma is too thick." The miko rubbed her irritated eyes with the back of her hands, coughing every time she took a breath. "We got to get out of this."

Tusaka put his arms around the young miko and helped her walk through the mist. "We should be out of this soon…damn I had no idea there was such a thick miasma in these mountains." He looked at Kagome, her eyes were squeezed shut, and her hands were clapped over her mouth and nose. _'Miko or not, Kagome-sama is still a mortal…she won't be able to survive if she stays exposed to it.'_

"I'm going to carry you." Tusaka said as he scooped Kagome up in his arms. "We'll be able to get out of here faster if I am able to run with you." He then took off through the miasma

Kagome opened her eyes and looked up at the youkai, his face was blurred…along with everything else she looked at. _'…so dizzy…'_ the miko thought to herself before closing her eyes again, allowing herself to get out a couple violent coughs.

Tusaka draped the sleeve of his kimono over her mouth and pressed in on it to keep it wrapped tightly around her. "Breathe through that…it should filter out most of the poison." He looked down at the miko as he ran. "Gomen Kagome-sama, this was a bad idea." _'If she gets any permanent damage inflicted on her up here I will never forgive myself.'_

As Tusaka neared one of the larger ravines, a large cloud of miasma exploded from it, blowing Kagome out of Tusaka's arms and flinging the two of them into a cliff. "Kagome…sama…" Tusaka groaned as he dragged himself to his feet. The miko lay sprawled out on a large flat rock that hung off the cliff about two hundred feet in the air. "Dammit."

A large shadow rose from the exploding ravine, the youkai was about fifty feet tall, and that was only the half that was towering out of the top of the gorge. It was almost dragon like, except its gray and black scales were hanging off and frail, while a dragon's scales was always known to be as hard as diamond. Its eyes were a blazing red, and its teeth were long and jagged and stained yellow.

"Oh, fuck." Tusaka took out his daggers and looked up at where Kagome still lay. "Kagome-sama!" he yelled, hoping the girl was still conscious. "Don't move! Don't budge one muscle!" he then ran for the large youkai that was now staring down at him hungrily. _'This is the last thing I need right now…'_

Inuyasha ran through the mountain pass with Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kirara tight behind him. _'The miasma isn't very strong here…'_ he thought. _'I hope they never went much further than this…'_ Inuyasha raced ahead of the rest as he neared the corner of the cliff.

"Inuyasha! Wait for us!" Shippo yelled. "Inuyasha! That baka, he won't be able to fight off the youkai that live up here by his self."

"Probably not," Miroku said. "But usually when it comes to Kagome-san Inuyasha will go through hell and back to try and get to her."

"I wish he would go to hell." Sango snarled under her breath. "When Kagome-chan sees him she'd better give him the osuwari of a lifetime…maybe if we're lucky it WILL send that damn hanyou to hell."

Miroku looked puzzled. "Sango you are awfully hard on Inuyasha aren't you?"

"He deserves it." Sango looked back at the monk. "And you know he does."

"Hai, but that doesn't mean you have to turn on him. I'm sure Kagome-san will punish him, she always does remember?" Miroku smiled and gave the side of Sango's rear a reassuring rub.

Sango twist around and slapped him. "Hentai." She growled before looked back a head. "Kirara try and catch up with Inuyasha, we can't have him going off by himself up here."

The feline hissed and started to fly through the air with a greater speed. Sango held on tighter, her eyes narrowing. _'Inuyasha…if that girl has but one scratch when we find her I will beat you to death with my Hiraikotsu…you won't get out of it as easily as you did before.'_

The youkai slayer sighed and closed her eyes. _'Kagome-chan loves him so much…she was blind for the longest time to his misdeeds. But Inuyasha…I can see it in his eyes that he really does love her back…'_ she thought back on all the times Inuyasha had left the group just to go see Kikyo._ 'He still loves her…it was no good for him to deny it. But he still always came through for Kagome-chan whenever she needed him.'_

Sango opened her eyes, they were now directly above Inuyasha, and the miasma was getting thicker. She gingerly put on her face mask and bided Kirara to press on. _'But this time he's gone way to far…Kagome-chan always forgave him but…this time I think Inuyasha is just rushing off to a heartbreaking letdown.'_

Kagome twitched when Tusaka spoke to her from below; she opened her eyes and stared into the four faces of the rotting corpses of men. She let out a scream and sat up; making the rock she was on move and almost slide off the cliff. She peered down at Tusaka, who was in an all out battle with the large youkai that had come up from the ravine.

'_I'm so high up…'_ the miko thought as she glanced back at the four festering corpses. _'That blast of miasma…it sent me up so far…'_ her eyes started to water due to irritation caused by the harshness of the miasma, and she took another coughing fit which made the rock move again.

"AH!"

"Tusaka-kun!" Kagome yelled upon hearing the leopard youkai cry out. The larger youkai had Tusaka scooped up in its hands, and was squeezing the life out of him. Kagome looked at the ground and saw that one of Tusaka's daggers resting by a rock, the other was still in Tusaka's hands.

Tusaka flung the dagger at the youkai, but it easily reflected the attack with its hand and sent the dagger flying up towards Kagome. The miko let out a cry as the dagger took her in the shoulder, making her fall back on one of the corpses.

"Kagome-sama!" Tusaka yelled his eyes trembling. "Kagome-sama! Kagome-sama!"

Kagome winced as she took the dagger out of her shoulder; it had completely run her though, for the point had come out through the back of her shoulder blade. "Ah! AH!" the miko cried out as the miasma stung her wound, seeping its poison into her bloodstream. She looked down, the youkai was continuing to squeeze its hands around Tusaka's body as tightly as it could, she could see that Tusaka was almost on the verge of passing out.

'_I have to do something…'_ Kagome thought frantically. She looked to one of the corpses, he was holding onto a very sturdy looking bow, she raised her eyebrow and looked at Tusaka's now crimson dagger. "I got it."

Kagome grabbed the bow and shook the fleshy rotted had off of it, she then hooked the dagger into the string as if it was an arrow. She peered out over the side of the rock, and while holding her breath she started to jump up and down on it, her shoulder feeling like it was going to burn off.

The rock finally gave way and started to fall, Kagome aimed the dagger so that it was aiming for just ahead of her. All the corpses fell off as she neared eye level of the youkai; she strained her arm back, widening her poisoned wound. "Hit the mark!" she cried as she let the dagger go, making it fly through the air.

Tusaka watched as his dagger, covered with Kagome's blood and glowing with her sacred powers penetrated through the youkai's head, making it explode. The grip the youkai had around Tusaka loosened just enough for him to wiggle his way free. As he fell he watched in horror as the rock Kagome was on smashed into the ground, tossing the miko to one side.

Tusaka landed and ran to her, making her stand up. "Kagome-sama we have to get out of here now the rocks are going to collapse." By this time the whole area was shaking and crumbling apart. Tusaka picked Kagome up and started to run with her.

"We're not going to make it…" Kagome whispered.

"Like hell we're not!" Tusaka spotted an opening off the side of the mountain. "I'm going to have to jump out over the side!"

"Yay…more falling…" Kagome mumbled.

Tusaka smiled. "Save your sense of humor, Kaogme-sama. Your going to need it after this." He got to the edge of the mountain and jumped out over the side, quickly clearing the miasma and leaving it behind.

Kagome looked down; there was a river right below them. _'At least the water will clean my wound of the poison…'_ she thought as more pain shot through her shoulder.

"Hold your breath!" Tusaka yelled moments before the two hit the water.

Kagome was torn away from Tusaka's grip and was swiftly carried down stream ahead pf him. She covered her mouth and looked around frantically for any sign of her friend in the water. After a few moments she kicked upwards and her head rose above water, she took in a mouth full of air before being sucked back under again.

For what seemed to be an eternity she was swept along the river, with still no sign of Tusaka. She then suddenly felt a strong hand grab her shirt and lift her out of the water, placing her on dry land. She looked up, expecting to see Tusaka's smiling face, but instead she was staring into the dark eyes of numerous villagers who had the look of shock and surprise on their faces.

Kaori: Well here we go, chapter 4 review MWAH!


	5. The Heart of a Cripple Child

Kaori: ooooh my, another chapter - I must really love you guys…actually I'm just as interested in how this is going to turn out as you guys are because I have no sweet clue yet! -.-; lol, well enjoy people! And arigatou again for the wonderful reviews!

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 5 _The Heart of a Cripple Child_**

"Ahh!" Inuyasha roared as he broke to the surface of the carnage and rubble that had fallen on him and the others. "Is everybody else alright?"

"Fine here…" Sango said as she hauled her Hiraikotsu out from under a large rock with the help of Kirara and Shippo.

"Same over this way," Miroku said has he resealed his wind tunnel after using it to suck up the rocks that had been covering him. "What made the mountain collapse?"

"Don't know…" Inuyasha said as he looked around. "But I hope Kagome wasn't here when it fell."

"She probably wasn't…" Sango answered as she climbed on Kirara's back. "But just incase she was lets take a look around."

"Hai." Inuyasha nodded.

Kagome was sat just outside one of the villagers huts, she had a colorful blanket draped across her shoulders, and there was a small crackling fire in front of her. All the villagers had gathered around to see her, but it was the village elder that did most of the talking.

"You were a brave yet baka miko to take on the mountain youkai like you did," the elder whose name was Ishikibo bowed her head slightly. "But in all cases, arigatou Kagome-sama, for you have destroyed one of the monsters that have been terrorizing our village for quiet some time…it was probably one of the stronger ones we've ever had to deal with."

"One of them?" Kagome asked.

"Hai, this village has been terrorized by many youkai over the past few decades." Ishikibo nodded sadly. "We cannot fend for ourselves or we were always royally helpless against the beats when they decided to attack."

"Why do they attack your village?" Kagome asked. "It seems awful strange."

"We think it's because of the closeness it is to the mountain. There is real fertile soil here and the youkai that attack are usually ground dwellers who wish to nest here. That large dragon like youkai you killed in the mountain was one of them." Ishikibo smiled. "Again, arigatou miko."

"Miss?" a young girl emerged from the crowd of people and quietly walked up to Kagome. She was a pretty little girl, with short brown hair and bright blue eyes, she wore an old brown kimono that was tattered at the bottom, she also crippled on a small walking stick. "Are you going to stay and help kill the rest of the monsters?"

Kagome's eyes trembled as she watched the little girl, she then smiled. "Hai, if you all wish for me to."

"That is wonderful." Ishikibo exclaimed.

Kagome sighed. "You never found another person in the river after for before you found me did you?" she directed the question to everyone who stood around her.

"Shetin, was there anyone else recovered?" Ishikibo asked a large muscular man that was standing just to one side of Kagome.

"No, ma'am, we kept a scout near the river for almost an hour and no one else floated down the stream." Shetin answered.

"You had a friend with you? Gomen Kagome-sama, kami only knows where he is now." Ishikibo sighed.

Kagome sighed and stared back at the river. _'Tusaka-kun…'_ she felt tears welling in her eyes, she closed them then lowered her head. _'Please be alright…I can't go through this without you…'_

After all the people went back to their respective houses, Kagome went to the rivers edge and watched the sun set behind the hills. She could see what was left of the mountain; it was so far away from the village though. _'I can't believe I was carried that far down the river.'_ She thought as she allowed her gaze to return to the sky.

"No moon tonight…" she sighed as the sun completely disappeared. "Inuyasha's feeble hours are here…he won't be searching tonight."

The sound of footsteps made Kagome swing around in the grass, the little cripple girl was waling up behind her. When they girl saw that she was caught, she dropped to her knees and bowed her head. "Gomen, I shouldn't have been snooping Kagome-sama."

Kagome smiled. "Don't bow to me, kid." She said. "And just call me Kagome, I'm no one that special." She rubbed the grass near her. "You can come and sit with me if you like."

The girl smiled and crawled over to the miko, sitting herself close. "I'm Chitata." The girl said with a perky smile.

"Chitata? What a pretty name." Kagome smiled. "Where are you parents? Shouldn't you be in bed right now?"

"Mommy left when I was two to get some potato flowers from the garden, she never came back." Chitata sighed then smiled. "Daddy went with three other men to the mountain to fight the evil youkai there. He made a special bow to help protect him; he said that if it didn't work for him it would help someone else in the future."

Kagome felt a chill as she remembered the smiling skull that was poking its way out of the rotting corpse she took the bow away from. "Chitata…"

"He died up there, I know that." Chitata said. "But Ishikibo-sama said he died with a great honor of trying to protect the village…so I'm happy for that."

"You're a brave little girl, Chitata-chan." Kagome said with a smile.

"Chan?" Chitata looked at Kagome with a spark of hope in her eyes. "Does this mean we are friends now, Kagome?"

Kagome laughed a little. "You bet we are."

"And you think I'm brave?" Chitata asked, her blue eyes growing wider.

"Well you a lot braver than me that's for sure." Kagome said as she looked back at the water.

"No way! You've slain that youkai! I could never do that." Chitata exclaimed.

"But you've went on this long without someone to help your through," Kagome said as she felt her eyes on the river. "I lost a friend after I left the mountain…and I'm not sure if I can go on without him with me."

"He was that good of a friend was he?" Chitata asked.

"I ran off from my group of other friends because of trouble I had with one of them, then I met Tusaka and…well lets just say my troubles where completely gone." Kagome smiled and looked at Chitata.

"The person you ran away from…was he really that bad?" the little girl asked wearily. "What did he do?"

"Do you know anything about ai, Chitata?" Kagome asked. "True ai?"

"Ishikibo-sama told me about it one time in a story." Chitata said. "About this princess you was in ai with a peasant boy. She ended up dying for him in the end. Why do you ask, Kagome-chan?" the girl took great pride in calling the miko that, she had never had a real friend before.

"That's what I felt over the person I ran from…" Kagome sighed and lowered her head. "But the feeling wasn't returned."

"But what about your new friend, was the feeling returned there?" Chitata started to sound aggravated about the whole subject.

Kagome, startled, looked up at the river again. _'Tusaka…'_ she sighed. "I loved him yes, but it wasn't that kind of love."

"Well what kind was it?" Chitata asked. "I'm confused, Kagome-chan."

Kagome giggled. "Your only young but you'll understand someday, Chitata-chan. But now I think its getting a little too late for you to be up." The light from the outside torches in the village was the only thing that up the side of the river. "You can sleep in the hut Ishikibo has given me to stay in."

"Oh arigatou!" Chitata stood up and leaned on her walking stick. "Will you me coming as well?"

"Not yet…but don't stay up. I'll be there when you wake up though." Kagome smiled.

"Goodnight, Kagome-chan."

"Goodnight, Chitata-chan…" Kagome watched as the little girl crippled back to the village. "I hope she never understands…she looks to have had a hard enough life as it is…let alone to have one where she suffers through ai…" she sighed. "Hopefully she won't fall in ai with a complete cumquat like Inuyasha."

'_If I cannot help this village I will never be able to forgive myself…that poor girl…these poor people. Ridden by war with a force much more powerful than them all combined. It's not fair.'_ Kagome stood up and walked along the river bank, away from the village fire light. _'Chitata has more guts than what I do…I'd never be able to put up with any of this.'_

Kagome stopped and listened to the river beat its way past rocks and other obstacles that lay in its path. A hand wrapped itself around her mouth, and an arm took the two of hers and held them to her back, the miko tried to scream but it was muffled by the palm of the freezing hand.

Kagome's heart raced, for awhile nothing happened, she and her attacker just stood there silently for a few moments. _'Think Kagome! Think!'_ Kagome's mind raced, she wasn't at all prepared for this attack. She tried o say osuwari, just incase it was Inuyasha, but she couldn't form her words under the pressure of the hand. On reflex Kagome tried to kick her attacker in the shin, with succession the attacker let her go.

Kagome was ready to run but was grabbed again and spun around, she miko let out a cry and closed her eyes. When nothing happened and her attacker never did anything but hold her shoulders still, Kagome opened her eyes. She found herself staring into a pair of familiar pair of piercing blue orbs.

Kaori: Okey dokey I'm done. - Can you guess who it is? My sister brought up that this person should be put in here somewhere so I had to do it XD yah man! hehe. Review.


	6. Comfort the Tears

Kaori: I have a very important question to ask you guys…but I'm waiting until the end of the chapter… so anyways, here's chapter 6!

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 6 _Comfort the Tears_**

Kagome blinked, the man in front of her gave her a kind smile. The young miko could feel a chill run up her back; it wasn't who she had hoped it would be...

"K-Kouga?" she stared the wolf youkai in the face without blinking, how the hell did he find her!

"I see you're not with that mangy hanyou, Kagome." Kouga sniffed the air and looked around. "Where is he anyway?" he then looked back at Kagome and grinned. "But I guess that doesn't matter, what really matters is that I can get some time alone with you."

Kagome laughed nervously. "Kouga this is hardly the time, I'm kinda busy at the minute." She took a couple steps away from the youkai. "How did you find me here anyway?"

"Oh, my wolves and I pass this place all the time on our way to the hunting ground." Kouga said as he put his fingers up to his chin, grabbing it with his pointer finger and thumb. "I caught a whiff of your sent and came over here as quickly as I could, just to see if you're making out alright." He eyed her shoulder; her uniform was still torn and had a bit of blood on it. "What happened there?"

"Nothing, nothing." Kagome said edging away from him.

"No let me see." Kouga grabbed Kagome by the arm and moved the collar of her uniform down over her shoulder, the bandage that was wrapped all around her shoulder and part of her arm was stained on both sides with blood. "Who did this to you!"

"Nothing happened, Kouga." Kagome said again, pushing his hands away from her. "It was an accident."

"Accident my foot," Kouga stood straight. "Tell me who did this to you Kagome, I'll hunt them down and rip them to shreds."

Kagome's eyes trembled; she felt tears welling up in them. She then put her face into her hands and started to sob. Tusaka still hadn't returned, and just the thought of him being dead made her stomach tie into a knot.

"Nani? What's wrong?" Kouga asked her.

"You can't…" the miko answered him harshly. "He's probably already dead…" her shoulders shook with every sob she made.

"Good, it saves me the trouble of having to chase him down." Kouga said, cracking his knuckles.

Kagome fell to her knees, she listened to Kouga who kept asking her what was wrong, but she didn't answer. _'…he's gone…gone!'_ the miko thought as she started to tremble even more. _'Oh Tusaka-kun…'_

"Kagome what the hell is wrong with you?" Kouga asked as he knelt beside her.

"Haven't you been taught anything?" a voice said from behind. "Your not suppose to make a girl cry, baka."

Kagome's head shot up, and her tears ceased. _'That voice…'_ both Kouga and Kagome turned around to face the person who stood behind them.

"Tusaka-kun?" Kagome whimpered, she stood up and looked the youkai in the eyes. "Your…alive?"

Tusaka smiled. "It'll take more than a river to get rid of me."

"Oh Tusaka-kun!" Kagome ran to him and fell to her knees at his feet, cuddling into his legs. "I thought you were dead! I thought…I thought…"

"Hey who the hell are you?" Kouga demanded, he pointed a finger at Tusaka. "Get away from my woman, cat!"

"Your woman?" Tusaka looked down at Kagome. "This must be Kouga, ne?" he looked up at the wolf youkai and smirked. "I don't see her clinging to your legs, wolf. Maybe you should check that accusation again and take another look."

Kouga growled. "She is mine, cat! And I'm just warning you now, don't you dare harm her!" he pointed at Kagome, his hand now shaking. "I can tell that you are the one who is responsible for the wound on her shoulder…if you dare hurt her again I will destroy you."

"I am responsible hai, but I did not do it." Tusaka said calmly. "And if you think that I'm worried about you wolf, you can forget it. I could really care less about your threats. So why don't you just bug off and leave the poor girl alone."

Kouga snarled, and then looked down at Kagome. "I'll be back for you someday Kagome. I promise you…one these days when you realize that the other hanyou and this mangy cat aren't worth your time, I'll be back for you…" he smiled, winked, and then ran off from the village.

"That guy is a real pain in the ass isn't he?" Tusaka asked as he looked down at Kagome.

Kagome's eyes welled with tears again as she stared up into Tusaka's green cat eyes, he was there…and he was alive. The young miko never felt so relieved in her entire life.

Tusaka knelt next to her and took her in his arms. "Hey, hey, don't cry." He cooed softly into her ear as he rocked back and forth. "Come on, Kagome-sama. Don't cry on behalf of me, come on...shhh…" he couldn't help but smile when he looked her in the face her eyes were red and still filled with tears. "You really missed me that much?"

Kagome nodded and bowed her head, continuing her crying. _'…I thought for sure I had lost you…'_

Tusaka smiled and took Kagome's chin into his hand and made her look back up at him. "Gomen, I shouldn't have made you worry like that." He wiped the tears off Kagome's face with the sleeve of his kimono and hugged her again. "It won't happen again I promise, Kagome-sama."

Kagome nodded slowly, she knew that Tusaka's promises actually meant something. She knew she could trust him not to break it.

"So," Tusaka sat back in the grass, keeping his arm around Kagome's shoulder. "What are you doing here in this village?"

Kagome sighed and started to tell him what Ishikibo had been telling her, her head all the time resting on his shoulder.

Inuyasha stared into the fire that was on the ground before him, he jumped at every noise in the rocks around him and the others. "Dammit, of all the times for there to be no moon!" he slammed his fist down on a rock. "This is the last thing I need right now!"

"This is definitely altering our search for Kagome-sama," Miroku said with a sigh. "But at least we know she wasn't caught up here when the mountain collapsed."

"Thank goodness." Sango commented from where she sat with Kirara and Shippo, whom were both asleep. "But where could she have gone after she left here?"

"There is a village down the valley, tomorrow if we follow the river we should get there within an hour or so." Miroku said.

"But if she was there tonight she'd be moved on by then!" Inuyasha snarled. "Fuck! We are never going to catch up with her and that damn youkai that took her."

"That's another thing; they are probably not even in the village." Sango said. "A youkai with a captured human girl isn't going to stay in a village; it's not even a reasonable thought."

"That means we are probably further behind that what we thought." Inuyasha's eyes narrowed. "I'm starting to get real tired of this. Why the hell did she have to run off like that!"

"Do we really have to answer that, Inuyasha?" Sango asked as she slurred her eyes at him.

Inuyasha sighed. _'I don't know what I'll do if I can't fin her…even if she don't come back with me I just want to let her know that I'm sorry…and that what she heard wasn't meant. I just hope she isn't hurt…or even worse.'_

"I think we should all get some sleep." Sango said as she lay back. "We need our strength for tomorrow."

The three lay down around the fire, but one of them never even closed his eyes. He was thinking of more important things than sleep, and besides, as a human he couldn't let his guard down.

Kagome watched Tusaka sleep at the other end of the hut; she herself was laid next to Chitata on a mattress made from goose feathers and straw. Tusaka had agreed gleefully to help her out to fend off the youkai when they attacked the village.

'_I can always count on him…'_ she thought as she closed her eyes. _'It feels so nice to know I can rely on someone.'_ It never took the miko long to get to sleep, but she was unaware of the watchful green orbs from the other end of the room, they never moved from her face.

'_You deserve so much yet get so little…'_ Tusaka thought as he scanned Kagome's features. _'I wish I could give you everything you deserve…but it's just not possible.'_

Kaori: OK! Time for my question. I am having a hard time trying to think of this, so I need EVERYONE who reviews to give me their votes. The largest vote obviously wins. How should the fic end: With a Kagome/Tusaka ending or a Kagome/Inuyasha ending? Review and tell me what you think! ;)


	7. Keeping the Peace

Kaori: Inu/Kag won! DUH! Lol. Just as I though XD so that's great! And yeah Kukaii-chan, I was thinking the exact same thing last night…I should bring Gina back at some point and time…..but I dunno yet ;) we'll just have to wait and see! So, gomen I'm so late getting this chapter up…big dance at the arena last night kinda got me a little off track. But I got home around 2:30 this morning and I figured I'd do some brainstorming before I went to bed, so while watching a repeat of Inuyasha one of the dark miko ones I took some notes and…well I got some new ideas (I got the ideas from the dramatic attempts Inuyasha made to save Kagome XD). So here we go! Chapter 7!

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 7 _Keeping the Peace_**

"So you're the friend Kagome-san had told us about yesterday." Ishikibo smiled her withered old face up at Tusaka. "I bet it made her day when you returned."

"Hai, I think it may have." Tusaka said, smiling back at the old woman. "So, I understand from what Kagome-sama has been telling me last night that your village is having youkai problems?"

"Hai, its becoming so big of a problem that one these days we fear that they will come and completely destroy our little village." Ishikibo sighed. "I guess it's our fault for building on such fertile land in the beginning."

"No, I doubt it." Tusaka said. "But don't worry, Kagome-sama knows what's she's doing, I'm sure she can help you…and also, I can pitch in as well."

"That would be very kind of you." Ishikibo bowed her head. "Now, may you please go and wake Kagome-sama? I have a great breakfast prepared at my hut, I'd like for you both to join me…and take Chitata along with ye if you'd like."

"Hai," Tusaka nodded and headed back to the hut Kagome was sleeping in. _'A good breakfast is just what Kagome-sama needs after last night.'_ He cracked a smile when remembering Kouga. _'What a baka…I admire his spirit though, he sure knows what he wants…foolish wolf.'_

Tusaka entered the hut, only to receive a sharp "Shh" from Chitata. He watched the young girl point to Kagome, who was sleeping soundly in the corner. Tusaka knelt down next to Chitata. "Ishikibo-san wants the three of us to head to her hut for breakfast, you head on over there now…I'll wake Kagome-sama."

Chitata sighed and stood up. "Fine, but it's your funeral." The cripple girl limped her way out of the hut, her walking stick hunched under her arm.

Tusaka chuckled and crawled over to Kagome; he touched her shoulder and shook her softly. "Kagome-sama, breakfast is ready at the elders house." He said while rolling Kagome over on her back. "Come on, rise and shine."

Kagome's eyelids slowly opened, she yawned and gave Tusaka a small smile. "Ohayoo gozaimasu." She yawned again and sat up, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"And an ohayoo gozaimasu right back at you." Tusaka smirked. "Come on, lazy. Ishikibo got breakfast made for us; we don't want to pass that up now do we?" he helped Kagome to her feet.

"Mm…breakfast…"Kagome yawned and stretched her arms up into the air. "That's great, I'm really hungry."

"KAGOME-SAMA! TUSAKA-SAMA!" the cry rose from outside the hut, Kagome and Tusaka could hear people from the village running around outside. Chitata then poked her head inside the hut, her face held an expression of panic. "Kagome-chan…Tusaka-sama…youkai…headed this way…from air and land."

Kagome and Tusaka ran out of the hut and looked out across the field, a youkai in the sky with fire coming from its feet and tail was flying towards the village with some more on its back, and on the ground another youkai was running at a very fast speed, it was cloaked in red. Kagome's stomach made a flop and her heart sank, it was Inuyasha and the others…they had found her.

"Here, Kagome-san." Ishikibo handed Kagome a bow and a bunch of arrows. "Before they get too close..."

"They are way too far out of range yet," Tusaka said.

Kagome shook her head, she was now trembling. Was it fear? She didn't know, but she could only imagine the kind of mood Inuyasha was in as he ran for the village. But still…she couldn't shoot at him. "I can't…shoot them."

"Why not? Ishikibo asked. "They are going to attack the village."

"No…they aren't." Kagome dropped the bow and arrows. "…they're here for me."

Tusaka blinked and looked back at the approaching youkai. "Inuyasha?"

"Hai." Kagome nodded. She put her hands over her mouth and watched as her friends drew closer to the village. "I can't go back with them…I can't…" she grabbed Tusaka's kimono. "Tusaka-kun…I don't know what he's going to do or say when he gets here…" she was almost crying as she looked into his green orbs. "I killed her…I killed Kikyo…" she let Tusaka go and crouched down. "I killed her and now he's coming for me."

"Well he's not going to get you." Tusaka cracked his fingers and stood in front of Kagome, the approaching team was now close enough to make out their faces. "Everyone get back…" Tusaka ordered, he watched as the villager cowered back so that they were well behind Tusaka and Kagome.

"Kagome-chan," Chitata knelt down next to Kagome and fell into the miko's arms. "They aren't going to hurt you? Are they?"

Kagome never answered, she just fell back on her rear and held the cripple girl in her lap, watching as he friends soon stopped just a few meters away from them. Kirara landed next to Inuyasha and let Miroku, Sango, and Shippo off her back. _'Sango-chan is here…she won't let Inuyasha go too extreme.'_

"State your business and be gone from here youk-" Ishikibo blinked and looked at Inuyasha carefully; she fumed a little and started her demand over. "Hanyou, state why you are here and then be gone with you! We need no trouble from you on this day!"

Inuyasha looked at Kagome and the little girl she was clinging to, he then looked to Tusaka and snarled. "Back away from her neko!" he took out Tetsusaiga and pointed it at him. "I'm warning you, keep her away from me any longer and I'll run you through!"

"I can't let you touch her, hanyou!" Tusaka yelled. He took out a sword from one of the three sheaths that were on his sides. "There is no way I am letting you past me…this is as close as you'll get to her!"

"Sango, Miroku…go to Kagome…I'll take care of this damned youkai." Inuyasha snarled as he ran fro Tusaka. Tusaka also made a mad dash for Inuyasha.

"No…" Kagome whimpered as she watched the two begin their fight. "…no…"

Sango, Miroku, Kirara, and Shippo ran over to Kagome and Chitata. "Kagome-chan!" Sango fell to her knees in front of the miko and the cripple girl, her eyes trembled with worry. "Are you alright? Did that youkai hurt you?"

"We are so glad that we've found you, Kagome." Miroku said.

"We thought we had you gone forever!" Shippo cried as he clung into Kagome's side, only to be batted away by Chitata.

Kagome looked past her friends; she kept her eyes on Inuyasha and Tusaka, horror building up inside of her as she saw that both men were bleeding in different areas already. _'…they are going to kill each other…'_ she thought as she looked back at the villagers, who were watching on in fear. _'The villagers…they've seen enough of this sort of thing through the years…they don't need anymore of it!'_

Kagome put Chitata on the ground and ran for the two fighting youkai. "Kagome-chan stop," Chitata and Sango both yelled. "Kagome-chan!"

Kagome ignored their pleas and kept going, she had to stop them. "Tusaka-kun, don't fight him! Please stop!" she screamed as she neared them. "Don't! The villagers don't need this!"

Tusaka lowered his sword, only to be clonked in the head by Inuyasha. The youkai dropped to the ground on his knees, letting his sword fall as well. _'Hai Kagome-sama…'_

Inuyasha smirked, not hearing Kagome's previous cry. "Die!" he lifted Tetsusaiga up over his head and was ready to cut Tusaka in half.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed, holding out her hand as she ran. "DON'T DO IT!" the miko jumped down next to Tusaka and hugged into him, she shut her eyes tight. "Inuyasha osuwari!"

The hanyou went crashing into the ground, and Tetsusaiga shrank back to his original form. Kagome, breathing heavily, was still hugging herself close to Tusaka. She could feel the youkai's blood soaking into her uniform on the arms and around her chest. Her eyes were locked on Inuyasha, whose face was still smashed into the dirt. _'He's here…'_ she thought. _'Was he trying to save me? Or was he trying to **get to** me?'_

Inuyasha rose his face up from the dirt; he stared at Kagome in disbelief as she cuddled into Tusaka. She was staring at him…and it was fear he could smell off her. _'She's scared of me…'_ the hanyou thought, as he was finally able to stand up. He returned Tetsusaiga to its sheath and just stood there staring at the miko, for a few moments he was unable to speak.

"Don't you dare harm him," Kagome warned. Her tone was flat and almost lifeless; for a moment to Inuyasha she almost sounded just like Kikyo. The miko's eyes filled with tears, she allowed one of them to fall down over her cheek. "Please…no more…"

"But **HE** kidnapped you!" Inuyasha yelled, pointing at Tusaka.

"He didn't!" Kagome yelled back at him. "We found each other at a hot spring! Tusaka-kun didn't kidnap me! He just started to travel with me!" Kagome's face relaxed a bit. _'He was worried about me.'_

"Nani!" Inuyasha's shoulder slumped down. "He…was traveling with you?"

"Hai," Kagome nodded as she let go of Tusaka and stood up. "He was helping me. He actually cares!"

"Kagome…I…"

Kagome cut the hanyou off. "You know what? I don't want to hear it!" the miko turned on her heels and ran back to the hut.

"Kagome-chan," Chitata stood up and hobbled after her, Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kirara followed.

Inuyasha just watched, unable to neither speak nor move. Had he lost her? _'Kagome…'_

Kaori: hai, I'm done of Chapter 7. XD like it? Well they are all together again…all they have to do is sort somethings out yadda yadda yadda…a few battles…lol…yeah this story is far from over yet XD R&R!


	8. Lose You Tonight

Kaori: Gomen, I've been slackin' off on the story :'( I've had lots to do lately sooooo I couldn't get to this chapter until now. So, I know your all here to read chapter 8, so I won't keep you any longer! Just one more thing I wants to say: This is a song Chappie dedicated to all the deep down thoughts that are now going through Inuyasha's mind…actually that's what this chapter is going to be all about…Inuyasha…and his thoughts…enjoy!

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 8 _Lose You Tonight_**

Inuyasha sat himself on the roof of the hut that contained Kagome, Kirara, and the little crippler named Chitata. His ears twitched at the sounds coming from inside, most of which was Kagome crying and blubbering to Sango about his and Tusaka's fight earlier that day.

Inuyasha sighed as another agonizing cry escaped Kagome's mouth from inside the hut, the sounds he heard stabbed into his heart like a rusty sword, and every jab hurt him and made him want to throw up. His golden orbs stared up at the small moon that hung in the sky surrounded by stars, he felt his heart sink in his chest, and a lump formed in his throat.

**Don't run away**

**Cuz I can't live without you**

'_She's out of my grasp now…'_ Inuyasha thought as he looked at his hands. _'She's so close yet I can't get to her…she won't hear what I want to tell her.'_

The hanyou sighed and lay back, closing his eyes. _'Gomen, Kagome. I didn't want to hurt you like I did…I didn't want it to have to come to his…everything that's wrong with your life revolves around me…it always had been that way…I was just to blind to realize it.'_

Another cry came from inside the hut, following by the breaking of a stone dish. Inuyasha's eyes slowly slid open to look at the moon once more as a sickly feeling rose in his stomach.

**Please stay**

**And I'll learn to love you right**

'_I blew it Kagome and I know that now…if I could take it all back I could. If I could have saw what me visiting Kikyo was doing to you sooner I would have stopped it right then and there…I probably wouldn't have even had the conversation with her about takes your soul away…then we could have avoided all this.'_

"Inuyasha is a baka…Kagome please don't cry…he's not worth your tears…" Inuyasha heard the young cripple girl say from inside the hut.

'_The kid's right…I deserve to be sat until I reach the pits of hell…'_ Inuyasha slipped his hand around Tetsusaiga's handle. _'If taking my own life would make you better I'd do it right now without hesitation, Kagome. Just knowing that it would bring you peace would be enough for me…'_

"You're a baka, you know that right?" Inuyasha sat up to the sound of Tusaka's voice.

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

**And I've been crying for you**

**Dying for you all this time**

"What do you want, neko?" Inuyasha snarled halfheartedly.

"I noticed that you were reaching for your sword, bodily harm will not ease the pain for you more Kagome-sama." Tusaka said from where he stood on the huts roof.

"I know that." Inuyasha snapped, standing up. "What are you doing up here anyway?"

"I came to hear it straight from the horse's mouth," Tusaka smirked. "Do you love her? Is all of her crying for no reason at all? What exactly do you feel about her?"

"How is this any of your concern!" Inuyasha almost roared.

"It's my concern because I am not letting you near Kagome-sama if your intentions are to harm her again." Tusaka's eyes narrowed. "I want to know if, when I leave, you will keep her safe and never hurt her like that again. If you cannot do that then you will never go near her again…I will not allow it."

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

**And I'm not gonna lose you tonight**

Inuyasha growled at the youkai. "You have no right…"

"I have the right for I protected her more than what you ever did!" Tusaka yelled, drawing his sword. "Now TELL ME! Tell me what you wish to tell Kagome-sama! Tell me what is in store for her if she goes with you…"

The two men stood looking at each other silently for quite some time, both snarling to themselves. Inuyasha's fists were clenched together so hard that his knuckles had turned white, he liked this guy's nerves. "I don't want to hurt her anymore…"

"What you want and what you will do are two separate things, Inuyasha!" Tusaka bellowed. "Tell me what you ARE going to do!"

Rage built up inside of Inuyasha's body, Tusaka was testing his patience, and the hanyou was soon going to rip him apart. _'I love her dammit…'_ he said to himself. "I love her!" he repeated out loud. "When she is upset my life falls into a pit of darkness, if she's hurt and on the verge of dying my life stands still in that moment of fear and anguish!" he grabbed Tusaka by the collar. "The love I feel for her is something you will never feel!"

Tusaka snarled and shoved Inuyasha on his back and pointed his sword at him. "Speaking such lies can get your tongue cut out hanyou." He said, his eyes a whirl of sickening hatred. "I suggest you keep your mouth shut!"

**Don't run away**

**I never wanted to hurt you**

**Please stay**

**And I'll learn to treat you right**

The hut door opened below, and Kagome ran off. Inuyasha and Tusaka watched her as she ran along the river bank. "If you wish to tell her how you feel go to her now, baka." Tusaka said helping the hanyou to his feet. "You want our chance here it is…but hurt her again and I will cut you down to size."

Inuyasha nodded and jumped down off the roof and chased after the miko. "Kagome! Stop!" he yelled as he ran. "Kagome!"

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

**And I've been crying for you**

**Dying for you all this time**

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

**And I'm not gonna lose you tonight**

Kagome never stopped running; she never even looked back at him. _'She's still scared…'_ he thought as he ran. _'…Kagome's terrified of me…this is a fate worse than death…'_ Inuyasha sped up his pursuit of the miko, he had to catch her…he had to explain everything to her, even if she wasn't willing to listen to him!

'_I'm not losing your heart to that neko youkai! I guess the bastard means no harm…but I'm not going to sit back and watch as he slowly takes you away from me!'_

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life, yeah**

**And I've been crying for you**

**Dying for you all this time, yeah**

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

**And I ain't gonna lose you tonight**

He looked a head of Kagome, there was a large stone wall that blocked her way along the river, and by the way she kept running he never saw it. _'I'll get her there…'_ he thought as he slowed his pace a little. _'This is killing me…I can't believe she is so scared of me…I never saw her this scared since the first time we met…right before Kaede put the rosary beads around my neck…only her terror is much stronger now…'_

Inuyasha frowned and moved his eyes to the ground. _'…I have never been more ashamed in my life than what I am now.'_

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life, oh**

**And I've been crying for you**

**Dying for you all this time, yeah**

**Cause I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life, yeah**

**And I ain't gonna lose you tonight**

**I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

**I've been crying for you**

**Dying for you all this time**

Inuyasha saw Kagome stop at the wall of rock, he stopped running and started to walk up to her, watching as she frantically tried to climb it without prevail. He saw her glance over her shoulder at him before turning back and looking at the wall, she seemed to be trembling.

"Kagome," Inuyasha said as he approached her. "Dozo…I need to talk to you…" he stopped when he was about ten feet away from her, he watched her still figure as it still stood facing the rock. "Aren't you even going to look at me?"

**I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

**I've been crying for you**

**Dying for you all this time**

Kagome turned around, her eyes wide with fear; but this time it wasn't fear of him, it was a fear of something else.

Inuyasha looked deep into her brown robs from where he stood, watching as more tears rolled down her cheeks. "Kagome what's wrong?"

"Inuyasha…" Kagome let out a sob, then Inuyasha smelled it, but it was too late. "Inuyasha run…" as the words left Kagome's mouth, the rock wall she was standing in front of exploded into the air, the after shock sending Inuyasha across the ground on his back.

**I was waiting for you**

**Waiting for all my life**

Kaori: Oh, so close…he was THIS close to telling her everything and then…THAT happened! ;; so it seems that he believes that he's gonna lose Kagome's heart to Tusaka, even though he has the feeling that Tusaka won't return that feeling…but why should an inu hanyou trust a neko youkai, right? stay tuned for chapter 9! OH YEAH! Also, another songchappie will be coming soon…I just don't know when….JA NE!


	9. Sustaining Life Kagome's Shard

Kaori: My home computer crashed along with what was supposed to be this chapter...so I'm back in school and waiting for my new comp. so I'm FINALLY going to get back to this story after ALL GOD DAMN SUMMER! ….heh….enjoy. Also, all Japanese words and phrases will have a star by them to show that there is a translation at the bottom…just to be helpful! Except –chan -sama -san -kun hanyou, kitsune, neko, and youkai…you should all know what those are!

ALSO! Spoilers for the 3rd Inuyasha movie at the end for those of you who hadn't seen it! It's the best one of the three! REAL GREAT!

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter 9** **_Sustaining Life – Kagome's Shard_**

Inuyasha groaned as he slowly came back to his senses, his ears twitched to the sounds of the villagers that had crowded around. He slowly opened his eyes and saw that Tusaka was staring down at him; there was a show of great concern in the neko's eyes.

"Inuyasha…where's Kagome-sama?" Tusaka asked as soon as he saw that the hanyou had revived. "What happened!"

Inuaysha shook his head then shot up. "Kagome!" he looked around, pieces of the rock wall was scattered all over the area in large mounds of rock and sand. "Iie…" his heart beat heavily in his chest as he watched a group of men push over one of the large boulders.

"It was another attack, one of the youkai that burrow inunder ground must have burst up through the rock wall." Ishikibo said calmly. "Kagome-san said before she left the hut that she sensed a sacred jewel shard coming from his direction. The youkai must have possessed the fragment she sensed."

"But where is she?" Tusaka roared. He grabbed Inuyasha by the collar and made him rise to his feet. "Did you see where she landed? Did you, hanyou?"

Inuyasha shoved Tusaka away from him and ran to a pile of rubble, arguing with the neko was a waste of time…precious time that could be used to look for Kagome.

"AH!" Sango groaned as she and Miroku flipped over a boulder so they could get Kirara to help dig in the mess in under it.

Tusaka snarled at Inuyasha before starting to dig in another pile of rubble. _'That baka hanyou couldn't even spot where Kagome-sama was thrown…we might never find her in under all of this…'_

Kagome's eyes slowly slid open; she coughed violently as she breathed in the dust that was still floating around in the air. "Oh…where am I?" she glanced around at the small cavern she was lying in. there was a pile of rubble blocking off what was probably the sky entrance and the cavern itself was hollowed out with smooth rocks that emitted a soft purple/pink glow.

"The jewel shard…" the injured miko groaned as she slowly rose to her feet. The wound on her shoulder blade delivered by Tusaka's dagger had reopened and the bandages that were wrapped around it were starting to soak off with blood.

Kagome started to feel a little dizzy and nearly fell over; she had to find the shard that was down in the rocks. _'…one of the rocks got a shard in it…it wasn't a youkai at all…the shard is making the rocks explode…'_ she thought as she walked along the walls of the cavern.

By this time her entire back, arm, and part of her chest were covered in blood, and she was feeling lighter headed every time she moved. "Is this my fate? To die in this cavern?" she took a shaky breath and lightly punched the wall. "I won't let it happen…I can't let it happen."

She looked up at the area of the cavern that rested above her; the dim light of the shard could be seen easily. "How the hell am I going to get up there?" the miko groaned, in her condition she was in no way fit to climb up the side of the cavern to retrieve the jewel. "I'll have to throw something at it to knock it loose." She said as she weakly picked up a rock.

Kagome bit her lip and put all her energy into throwing the rock, it hit the shard and made it move…but it never came completely loose. Kagome hurt, she was losing way too much blood. Her vision was now off and she could barely stand straight. "One…more…shot…" she whimpered as she picked up another rock. She threw it into the air, and then fell on her stomach into a pile of blood she had made.

The miko watched as the shard landed on the floor near her. _'…finally…'_ she reached out weakly and grasped the shard, bringing it back closer to her. _'I feel so weak…'_ she thought bitterly to herself. _'How am I going to survive this?'_ the shard glimmered, making Kagome get an idea.

"I can use the shard…" she said aloud as she forced herself to sit up. "It can help me to survive…" with that she frowned. _'I can't use the jewel for my own selfish needs…I never did before…and it will only be the jewel that will be keeping me healthy…inside I will be sick…and dying.'_

"I can't do it…" she slowly added the jewel to her bottle and fell back down, she was practically swimming in her own blood, her hair and face was full of it now.

'_I will die…alone…'_ the miko thought as tears streamed down her face. "Inu…yasha…"

'_I could use the jewel until I get out of here…up there I will be able to be taken care of…'_ Kagome thought to herself quickly, not wanting to give up on all hope. _'But what if I cannot remove the jewel? What if I wish not to lose it? Many people have been poisoned by the shards…wanting to gain more power…will I end up like that?'_

Kagome took the jewel back out and stared at it; she could feel her life slipping away with every shaky breath she took. _'Just for now…'_ with that thought in mind the miko drove the shard inside the wound that passed through her shoulder. She let out a painful cry as she felt the skin around the wound stretch and expand to cover over the two gaping holes.

The pain soon stopped, and Kagome just lay there and watched as all the blood she had spilt dried up and crumbled away into nothing. Her wound had disappeared, and her energy had returned. With a small sigh she stood up and looked down at her now clean uniform. "When they find out they'll hate me for this…" she sighed.

"_Inuyasha…there's a cave in over here…it looks like the ground just gave away!"_

Sango's voice echoed from above the cavern, making Kagome's heart flutter. "They're going to find me…" she ran over to the pile of rubble that had brought her into the cavern. "Sango-chan! Sango-chan!" she started to shove away rocks in a pitiful attempt to dig her way out.

"_I'll use my Wind Scar…"_

Hearing the words come from Inuyasha's mouth made her heart jump up into her throat, her nerves went straight into action as she raced away from the rubble as it disappeared into a violent yellow beam, followed by the dim silver glow from the moon that was now pouring into the caven.

"It's some kind of a cavern!" Tusaka said from above. "I'll go check it out."

"Not without me your not!" Inuyasha barked after him.

Kagome watched as the two landed on the inside on the cavern, just a few feet from her. "Tusaka…Inu…Inuyasha…" Kagome's eyes trembled.

"Kagome-sama!" Tusaka ran to her before giving Inuyasha a chance to move. "Are you alright?" he wrapped his arms around the miko tightly.

"Tusaka…" Kagome whimpered. "I'm alright...I'm alright…I knew you guys would find me."

"Great so we found her now let's get out of here." Inuyasha snapped as he jumped back up out of the cavern.

"Oh…Inuyasha…" Kagome sighed as she slowly backed away from Tusaka.

"Kagome-sama…" Tusaka sighed. "Come on…we can't stay down here all day…"

"Hai, I know that…" Kagome sighed again and followed Tusaka out of the cave to be greeted by her worried friends and the people from the village.

Inuyasha stayed away from the crowd, he just sat alone on the river bank in the darkness of the night. _'She's alright…'_ he thought with a sigh. _'As long as she is alright…that's all that really matters right now…'_

Kagome sighed and put her hand up to her shoulder, she felt so great and she never had this much energy before; the shard was doing wonders. _'This isn't right…I feel so guilty. Am I no better than all those who misuse the jewel?'_

Iie- No

Baka- Stupid/Idiot

Hai- Yes

Kaori: Okey, in movie 3 Miroku states to Sango that what good is his cursed hand if he cannot use it to protect the woman he loves - how sweet is that? Also…Sesshoumaru-kun makes the realization of a lifetime…thought of course, he STILL 'he protects no one', though he realizes otherwise he still thinks that way. Also...the prayer beads get broken..dum dum dum…..lol - I just had to get that off my chest - well I'll be back with another chapter soon I hope..i should be getting my laptop today!


	10. Silent as the Dead

Kaori: FINALLY! I'm back xD YAY ME! Gomen about taking so long though ;;

**Dear Life, I Quit**

**Chapter** **10** **_Silent as the Dead_**

The sun was up for about three hours, giving Kagome enough time to wash and eat a helping of the breakfast rice Ishikibo had prepared for her. She couldn't get the shard out of her mind, she wanted to take it out, she really did, but the thoughts of dying before any help could take effect made her scared.

'_I'll just leave it in until…I don't know…'_ Kagome sighed and kept hitting the back of her head on the wooden wall of the hut. _'I'm so stupid…**baka jan**…'_ she closed her eyes and kept hitting her head, the pain seemed to calm her nerves a little bit…that was until Inuyasha entered the hut…

"What the hell are you doing?" the hanyou asked, cocking an eyebrow. "Your going to hurt yourself if you keep doing that." He sat by her and put his hand on the back of her head to prevent her from bringing it back to the wall again.

Kagome turned her eyes towards the hanyou's face, he look a little bit too calm for the Inuyasha she had gotten to know over the years. She then remembered the incident that had made her run from home in the first place, seeing Kikyo's body shatter through her mind once more.

She looked deeper into the hanyou's eyes, now a little uneasy. "Inuyasha…"

"Kagome…you have no idea how worr-" a scream from outside cut Inuyasha off.

"Kagome-sama! Kagome-sama!" Ishikibo screamed from outside. "They're coming! They're coming!"

Kagome looked at Inuyasha as she stood up. "I…heh. **Gomen**, Inuyasha." She then grabbed her bow and arrows and ran out of the hut.

When outside the miko could see a band of youkai racing towards the town; they were large rat-like creatures with thick purple fur and large yellow teeth. "Oh no…" she covered her mouth. "Ishikibo get all the villagers away from here, now!" The elderly woman nodded and went to gather up the villagers.

Kagome turned to Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Tsuaka. "Guys…"

"We're way ahead of you, Kagome-chan." Sango smiled as Inuyasha exited the hut.

Kagome turned to the hanyou and sighed. "Inuyasha…"

"This should be no problem at all," Inuyasha said as he took out Tetsusaiga. "Just as long as you don't sense a jewel shard coming from them."

Kagome felt numb, the only shard she could sense was the one in her shoulder, and with that one so close she won't be able to sense any others. "I don't sense any…" she said in a fake calm voice.

"Then lets do this!" Tusaka smirked as he took out this sword.

"Kagome-sama!" Ishikibo called. "We need help getting the villagers away!"

"I'll go…" Sango said hopping on Kirara's back. "We'll carry them away to somewhere safe."

"Alright, Sango-chan." Kagome nodded and smiled. "Good luck."

Sango nodded and she and Kirara raced off with Ishikibo.

"Lets go!" Inuyasha yelled as he raced off towards the youkai, which were now almost on top of them.

They all ran behind him, Kagome could feel the power of her shard growing, making her run faster. _'I got to slow down…'_ she thought, slowing her pace a little.

The two sides met, and the battle begun. Kagome knelt down and started taking out the youkai with her arrows. Tusaka and Inuyasha too the corners of the band of youkai, slashing through their hides easily with their swords. Miroku, using his wind tunnel, took out the ones that were trying to go around them to get to the village; and Shippo…Shippo was doing his best along side of Kagome with his foxfire.

Kagome had total control over what she was doing, her mind set on the beasts that were coming towards her…until when she was on her last arrow, she heard a voice that made her blood run cold.

"Kagome-chan!" Chitata hobbled up from behind, holding a bunch of arrows under her arm. "Kagome-chan I have some arrows for you!" The girl tripped up and ell to the ground.

Kagome dropped her bow and stood up, spinning around to face her. A large youkai was making its way towards Chitata, its mouth foaming and its eyes glowing a brilliant red. Chitata looked up from where she lay. "KAGOME-CHAN!" she screamed.

Kagome didn't have time to think, she ran to Chitata as fast as she could, her mind blank with fear. Just as she got in front of the girl, the youkai was on them; Kagome launched herself at the youkai, taking its long claws to her shoulder…the jewel popped out.

"NO!" Chitata screamed and put her head down sobbing as Kagome's blood splattered around her.

Inuyasha, Miroku, Shippo, and Tusaka turned their heads as the last of the youkai fell; as the youkai lifted Kagome off the ground, its claws through her shoulder, time stood still, and their blood ran cold.

"N-n-no…no…." Inuyasha shook his head. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" he charged for the youkai, his sword over his head. He let out another vicious roar as Tetsusaiga sliced through the youkai's body.

Kagome's limp body slid from the youkai's claws and she fell to the ground near Chitata, her eyes widened, and her mouth crooked open. Her bottom lip twitched before her eyes rolled back in her head and closed.

Inuyasha dropped Tetsusaiga and ran to her, he knelt beside her and held her in his lap, his whole body shaking. "Kagome…Kagome…." He stammered as he ran his hands through her hair, getting it out of her face. "No…no Kagome please…open your eyes…talk to me please…."

Miroku stood over them with a trembling Shippo on his shoulder while Tusaka picked up Chitata in his arms, squeezing her in a small hug. The neko's breathe trembled violently as he looked at Kagome, she didn't look alive…there was no signs…and all he could smell was the foulness of her blood.

"Kagome please…" Inuyasha begged as he put his forehead on hers. "Please Kagome…Kagome…" the miko's head fell back on his arm, and her mouth fell shut. The deadly silence that hung over the field at that moment was sickening…and neither of them would ever forget it for as long as they lived.

Baka jan: what an idiot

Gomen: (I'm) sorry

VVVVVVVVVVVV

Kaori: I know, I could have made this chapter longer and more detailed but…I wanted to get it up tonight for all you guys. O-o I would LOVE to have reviews for this chapter…and I'm sorry for the cliffy…


	11. No One's Fault

Kaori: I don't really have anything to say right now…by the time I get this chapter done I'll have something to comment on. Enjoy.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Chapter 11No One's Fault 

Inuyasha sat outside the hut in which Kagome was contained, her stared at the shard that sat before him on the ground. "She was using a shard…" he said blankly.

"She had no choice," Miroku said. "You heard what Ishikibo was saying, it seemed that she was injured first when that rock exploded, she must have found a shard and used it to keep herself alive."

Sango, Shippo, and Kirara sat quietly to one side of them, their fixed on the ground. Sango's face was red, and her eyes puffy, she had barely stopped crying since she had returned to the village to find Kagome in the state she was in.

All heads rose as Tusaka exited the hut, he moved his eyes to Inuyasha. "You see what you caused?"

"WHAT!" Inuyasha jumped up and grabbed Tusaka by the collar. "YOU THINK I MEANT FOR THIS TO HAPPEN?" his eyes held tears that he wouldn't let fall.

"All of this was caused by YOU in the beginning!" Tusaka shot back, he drew his sword and shoved Inuyasha away. "I should have made away with you when I had the chance!"

Inuyasha ripped Tetsusaiga from its sheath. "Come on then you bastard! I'll tear you to pieces!"

By this time the others were to their feet. "Stop this! Both of you!" Sango roared angrily, wild tears rolling down her face. "STOP IT!" Her pleas went unnoticed as Tusaka and Inuyasha fought, sparks flying from their sword blades as they clashed together.

"Inuyasha! Tusaka!" Miroku roared at them as he restrained Sango from running at them. Shippo cuddled into a now transformed Kirara, crying.

"Its all your fault!" Tusaka yelled as he sliced through Inuyasha's shoulder. "DAMN YOU!"

Inuyasha kicked Tusaka's legs out from in under him, knocking the neko on his back. The hanyou stood over him, his sword just inches from Tusaka's face. Fresh blood soaked the hanyou's kimono, but he didn't take notice.

"Don't you dare blame me for this…" he snarled. "I would never…"

"LIER!" Tusaka yelled at him. "YOU WERE THE ONE THAT SENT HER HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE, HANYOU!"

At these words Inuyasha dropped his sword and stumbled backwards, his whole body hurt. _'My fault…'_ he thought. The hanyou shook his head in anger and jumped on top of Tusaka and started to plow him in the face. "FUCK YOU! DAMN YOU TO HELL!" he roared as the sickening crunches that came from Tusaka's face met his ears. Every punch he blowed into the neko was bliss to him, but it was short lived, he soon found himself being dragged back by Sango and Miroku.

"Inuaysha…please stop…" Sango cried. "It's not going to help…please…stop…" the youkai slayer bowed her head into her hands and started to tremble.

Tusaka sat up, his mouth and nose bleeding down over his face. His chest heaved as he slid away from the hanyou, and used Kirara to help himself stand. "If there's nothing that can save her…I will kill you…I promise that…" with that, the neko walked away towards the river.

Inuyasha tried to get up, but received a blow to the skull from Sango. The youkai slayer stood and glared down at the hanyou. "HOW CAN YOU FIGHT WITH HIM! HOW CAN YOU DO THIS NOW!" she screamed, grabbing his collar. "Why now? Of all times! While Kagome-chan is in there…" she pointed a trembling finger towards the hut. "…in there alone, fighting to live. WHERE DID YOUR SENSES GO!" she slapped Inuyasha a couple times before Miroku dragged her away from him.

"Come on Sango…I'm getting you to bed." He picked the crying girl up in his arms, and then looked to Shippo and Kirara. "Come along you two…" the four of them left the scene, leaving Inuyasha alone with his thoughts.

The hanyou grabbed the shard off the ground and pocketed it, then stood up and turned to look at the hut door. He sighed and entered, his eyes trembled when they landed on the miko. She was covered up under a thick blanket, her arms out over it. He could see her shoulder bandaged up, and fomr what he could tell she wasn't wearing anything else under the blanket.

Inuyasha settled himself down next to her, propping himself up on the floor; his eyes landed on the purple flowers that Tusaka had left on the foot of the futon. He had nothing for her, it hadn't crossed his mind; he sighed to this and moved his eyes back to Kagome's pale face.

"Look at what I've caused…" he whispered as he took her hand in his, and ran the fingers of his other hand through her thick, black hair. "Kagome…I swear it…I'd do anything to have you back up and smiling again…just to see you look at me…in anger or in delight…would allow me to die a happy man." He ran his hand down her cheek. "I just want to know that you're alright…" _'I can't go on without you…'_ he thought sadly.

Inuyasha lay down on the futon next to Kagome, her hand still in his; he closed his eyes and squeezed her hand. When neither return squeeze could be felt he sighed to himself and drifted off to sleep, allowing a single tear to roll down his cheek.

X x x x x x x x x X

Tusaka sat looking out at the river, he was after washing the blood from his face and settling his nerves by listening to the calmly moving water. He had no right to accuse Inuyasha of being responsible for what had happened to Kagome…did he? He wasn't sure; it was the hanyou who drove her off towards this land in the first place…right?

'_I'm a fool…I shouldn't have taken her this way in the first place…'_ he thought.

"…Tusaka-san?"

Tusaka turned around to see Chitata limping towards him, upon seeing her he stood up and walked over to her slowly. "Hai, Chitata?"

"Its my fault isn't it?" the cripple girl asked, her big teary eyes stared up at him. "Its my fault that Kagome-chan got hurt…" she started to sob softly.

"Oh, no, no…" Tusaka picked Chitata up in his arms and gave her a reassuring hug. "No, it's not your fault. You were only helping her…we couldn't help what happened."

"But…but…" Chitata stared at him. "She was trying to save me and…if I didn't go out there…she'd be…she'd be…" she girl cuddled into Tusaka's shoulder and sobbed loudly.

What could he say? He patted the girl's head softly. "Listen, I promise you, it wasn't your fault…it wasn't anybodies fault. Kagome-sama would have done something to save anyone out there…no matter what. I bet you that she's just happy to know that you're safe."

VVVV

Kagome felt someone near her…a hand over hers…who was it? She couldn't tell, and for some reason…her eyes wouldn't open. Was she dead? No, no this couldn't have been what death was like. It was too dark…too cold…too empty.

The person next to her moved slightly and squeezed her hand; she felt the claws digging into her skin…it was Inuyasha! With all her might the miko tried to return the squeeze, but she couldn't, her body wouldn't move for her. All she could do was breathe… everything else was blocked off from her control.

'_He's lying with me…'_ she thought. _'He's here…for me…'_ the miko could feel her body sob as the still darkness grew denser, she was now unable to think once again as a deep slumber toke over her mind.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Kaori: Weeeeell thankies for the reviews/emails. XD I'm currently working on a side project called "Forgotten Past" so keep an eye out for it, it will be posted…sometime within the next few days. Ja ne!


End file.
